Harry C. “Buck” Niehoff is an American lawyer, civic leader, and philanthropist from Cincinnati. He practiced public-finance law with Peck, Shaffer & Williams for four decades, served as chair of the University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees, and supported educational, cultural, environmental, and civic institutions.
Background
Harry C. Niehoff was born on March 7, 1947, in Cincinnati, Ohio. He attended Cincinnati Country Day School, graduating in 1965, and developed his civic and professional life in the Cincinnati area.
He is publicly known as “Buck” Niehoff. His later community activities remained closely connected with Cincinnati institutions, including the University of Cincinnati, the Mercantile Library, the Cincinnati Museum Center, Great Parks of Hamilton County, and local professional organizations.
Education
Niehoff graduated from Cincinnati Country Day School in 1965. The independent school, founded in 1926, has educated students in the Cincinnati region through a college-preparatory tradition emphasizing academic study, extracurricular participation, and community responsibility.
He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Denison University in 1969. During his time at Denison, he served as editor of the Denisonian, participated in student government and varsity athletics, and was elected to Omicron Delta Kappa. Denison, founded in 1831 in Granville, Ohio, is a residential liberal-arts university whose undergraduate tradition combines broad academic study with student leadership.
Niehoff also studied at the University of Exeter in England before earning his Juris Doctor from the University of Cincinnati in 1972. The University of Cincinnati, founded in 1819, is a major urban public research university; its law school traces its origins to the nineteenth century and prepared Niehoff for a career in public-finance law.
Career
Niehoff began practicing law in Cincinnati in 1973 at Peck, Shaffer & Williams. The firm specialized in public finance and municipal bond law, advising public institutions and governmental entities during a period when tax-exempt bonds became an important mechanism for financing infrastructure, education, and civic development. He became a partner in 1978 and spent approximately forty years with the firm, including service in senior management and leadership of its governmental-finance practice. He retired from the firm in 2012.
Alongside his legal career, Niehoff undertook extensive civic and institutional service. He served as a trustee of Denison University from 1983 to 1989 and later held leadership roles with the University of Cincinnati, including vice chair and chair of its Board of Trustees. Governor Bob Taft selected him for a nine-year University of Cincinnati trustee term beginning in 2002; he presided over the board during the university's development and presidential-search activities.
Niehoff co-chaired the University of Cincinnati's Proudly Cincinnati capital campaign, which raised approximately $1.1 billion. He and his wife also supported the university through the Evening with a Great Teacher program, the University House, and the Niehoff Urban Studio, an interdisciplinary center addressing urban issues through design and community-based study.
His civic work extended to the Mercantile Library, the Cincinnati Museum Center, the Ohio Cancer Research Associates, the Great Parks of Hamilton County, the Cincinnati Urban Design Review Board, and other local institutions. Great Parks, created in 1930, protects natural areas and provides outdoor recreation and education in Hamilton County; the Urban Design Review Board advises Cincinnati officials on the appropriateness of development and public improvements.
Achievements
Niehoff practiced public-finance and municipal-bond law with Peck, Shaffer & Williams for approximately four decades, contributing to the legal work surrounding financing for public institutions and infrastructure.
He co-chaired the University of Cincinnati's Proudly Cincinnati capital campaign, which raised approximately $1.1 billion for the university.
He helped establish the Niehoff Urban Studio at the University of Cincinnati, an interdisciplinary initiative addressing urban issues through design education and community-based study.
He provided major philanthropic support for the University of Cincinnati College of Law, including a gift that named the atrium of its new law building for Peck, Shaffer & Williams.
Politics
Niehoff was associated with the Republican Party and served as chairman of the Hamilton County Republican Party finance committee. His political involvement belonged to the American party tradition that generally emphasizes representative government, private initiative, fiscal responsibility, and civic participation, although Republican organizations have contained differing conservative and moderate currents throughout his public career.
Views
Niehoff's public philanthropy reflects a belief in the importance of strong educational institutions, civic responsibility, and investment in the cultural and physical life of cities. His support for urban design, public universities, libraries, museums, parks, and community organizations connects professional public-finance work with a broader commitment to civic infrastructure and public institutions.
Membership
Niehoff's memberships and institutional service centered on legal, educational, cultural, environmental, and civic organizations. He belonged to the Cincinnati Bar Association and the Ohio State Bar Association, professional bodies serving lawyers and the legal profession in Ohio.
He served as a trustee of Denison University and the University of Cincinnati, and held leadership positions with the Mercantile Library, the Cincinnati Museum Center, Great Parks of Hamilton County, the Ohio Cancer Research Associates, the Cincinnati Country Day School, and other community organizations. These institutions respectively support higher education, public library and cultural programming, museums and history, environmental conservation and recreation, medical research, and independent education.
Alumni trustee.
Denison University Board of Trustees
,
United States
1983 - 1989
Served as vice chair and chair of the board.
University of Cincinnati Board of Trustees
,
United States
2002 - 2010
Member.
Cincinnati Bar Association
,
United States
Member.
Ohio State Bar Association
,
United States
President.
Mercantile Library
,
United States
1993 - 1996
Trustee and vice chair.
Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority Board of Trustees
,
United States
1987 - 1991
Board member and former chair.
Cincinnati Museum Center
,
United States
Board member.
Great Parks of Hamilton County Board of Park Commissioners
,
United States
2014
Board member and chair.
Cincinnati Urban Design Review Board
,
United States
October 23, 2013 - 2022
Board member.
Ohio Cancer Research Associates
,
United States
Personality
Niehoff has been described in institutional tributes as an active student leader, effective civic volunteer, and steady university trustee. His documented record combines professional leadership with long-term service to educational and cultural organizations.
Quotes from others about the person
University of Cincinnati trustees commended Niehoff for his leadership of the board, his work strengthening relationships between the university and the wider community, and his role in the presidential search. Denison University described him as an outstanding student leader and recognized his continuing volunteer service to the university.
Niehoff is married to Patricia “Patti” Niehoff. They have supported educational and civic initiatives together, including University of Cincinnati programs and community lecture activities connected with the Mercantile Library.
Their son is Petersen Niehoff, who is associated with medical and academic work.
Wife:
Patricia Niehoff
Known publicly as Patti Niehoff; she and Buck Niehoff have supported educational and civic initiatives together.
Son:
Petersen Niehoff
Associated with medical and academic work.
References
Harry C. Niehoff - Denison University Alumni
Documents Niehoff's Denison education, student leadership, legal career with Peck, Shaffer & Williams, civic activities, and service as a Denison trustee.
Gift names new UC College of Law building atrium
Documents Niehoff's forty-year legal career, philanthropic gift to the University of Cincinnati College of Law, and leadership of the university's Board of Trustees and Proudly Cincinnati campaign.
